Story Highlights
- historical event: The Chang'e 1 satellite successfully entered the Moon's orbit, remaining at an altitude of over 200 kilometers above the Lunar surface. The recordings made on that voyage allowed for the most detailed 3D map of the Lunar surface in history to be produced.
On this day the People’s Republic of China succeeded in placing its first satellite into orbit around the Moon. It was named Chang’e 1, after the Chinese Moon goddess. The satellite was launched from southern China, and needed slightly less than two weeks to reach the vicinity of the Moon.
The Chang’e 1 satellite successfully entered the Moon’s orbit, remaining at an altitude of over 200 kilometers above the Lunar surface. Each circumnavigation took it around 127 minutes.
With the help of its cameras, Chang’e 1 started recording the Moon’s surface. The recordings made on that voyage allowed for the most detailed 3D map of the Lunar surface in history to be produced. The satellite spent 1 year, 4 months and 4 days in orbit around the Moon (even longer than was originally planned). Eventually, in 2009, the satellite crashed down onto the Moon’s surface and was destroyed.
